A Carers Rights Day reflection by Lisa and Maisie

''Hello, my name is Lisa, and I am an outreach worker with WCD Young Carers. I am also the parent carer of my son Leo, who’s almost 11 and currently in remission from leukaemia, so today ill be talking about the pressures carers face and the work we do in supporting young carers.

When your child is diagnosed with cancer, everything else fades away. Life becomes hospital corridors, endless blood tests, and that constant knot of fear in your stomach. You live hour to hour, day to day, hoping for good news.

My son went through years of chemotherapy, but through it all, he never lost his spirit.

When treatment ended, people often said, “You must be so relieved it’s over.” And I was — but for parent carers like me, remission isn’t the end of the story. It’s the beginning of a new one.

The treatment saved his life, but it also left its marks. He now has cognitive difficulties caused by the chemo, suspected autism, and PTSD from everything he’s been through. So while the cancer is gone, caring hasn’t stopped — it’s just changed shape.

 Now our we have appointments, school meetings, therapies, and paperwork. I’m not just his mum — I’m his advocate, his translator, his safe place.

But I’m also a mum to my daughter, who’s 16. She’s grown up watching and helping, becoming a young carer in her own right. She has such a big heart — she makes her brother laugh, helps him when he’s struggling, and keeps our family grounded with humour and love.

I’m endlessly proud of her, but I also wish she didn’t have to grow up quite so fast. As a parent, you carry this double weight — caring for one child who needs extra support, and worrying that the other might be quietly carrying too much. You want to protect them both, but in different ways.

Being a parent carer means living in that balance: between exhaustion and love, fear and gratitude. There are days when I feel invisible, and days when I feel unstoppable. And through it all, my children remind me what resilience really looks like.

Carers Rights Day matters because carers — both parents and young people — need support, understanding, and recognition. We don’t ask for medals, just for systems that make life a little bit easier, and time to breathe without feeling guilty for it. ''

Under the Social Services and Wellbeing Act 2014, young carers have a legal right to be identified and to have their needs assessed. That means local authorities and schools have a duty to make sure young carers are supported — not just seen as “coping.” The law recognises that no young person should miss out on education, friendships, or opportunities because of their caring role.

But rights only matter when they’re understood and acted on. That’s why awareness is so important. When teachers, GPs, and community workers know what to look for, young carers don’t fall through the cracks. When families know there’s support available, they don’t have to struggle alone.

Support can take many forms — from flexible homework deadlines and counselling at school, to respite breaks and young carer groups where they can just be kids for a while. Sometimes it’s not about huge changes, but small acts of understanding that make a big difference.

Carers Rights Day reminds us that every young carer deserves recognition, respect, and the right to live their own life — not defined by their caring role, but supported within it.

Introducing Maisie

''Being a young carer means I help out at home in ways most teenagers probably don’t think about. I support my brother emotionally, help Mum when things get busy, and sometimes just try to make everyone laugh when it’s all a bit much.

It’s not always easy. There are days when I’d love to just be a “normal” teenager — to come home from school and switch off. But in our house, there’s always something that needs doing or someone who needs a bit of extra care or patience.

Don’t get me wrong — I wouldn’t change my brother for the world. He’s funny, cheeky, and completely unique. But being a young carer has taught me that love doesn’t make the hard bits disappear — it just gives you the strength to keep going through them.

That’s why young carers’ rights are so important. We need people — schools, workplaces, healthcare services — to understand what life is really like for us.

It’s things like:

• Schools recognising that we might be tired or distracted, not because we don’t care, but because we’ve been caring.

• Teachers checking in and offering support without making us feel different.

• Access to counselling or young carer groups where we can talk to people who get it.

• And just being seen — not as “the sibling of the child who’s unwell,” but as a person with our own needs and dreams.

Sometimes young carers are overlooked because we seem to be coping. But coping doesn’t mean we don’t need help. It just means we’ve learned to manage — quietly, efficiently, and often invisibly.

Carers Rights Day is a reminder that caring shouldn’t come at the cost of your education, your mental health, or your childhood. It’s about making sure young carers have the same opportunities as everyone else, with a bit of understanding and flexibility to make that possible.

I’m proud to be a young carer — it’s made me more patient, more responsible, and definitely better at multitasking. But I also know I deserve support, time for myself, and a future that’s about me as well as my caring role.

So today, I just want to say — to every young carer out there: what you do matters. You’re not invisible. And to everyone else: please make sure our rights are more than words — make them real in how you see and support us.'